disarcina

best swing this year -- I have to say Trout. best, sweetest HR swing over the years -- gotta go with Wally Joyner....a pure hitter. Beautiful swing.

Ok. I like the lists which just reminds me that the Angels have always been short of quality starting pitching as I can only count about 3 or 4 true aces on that list. Are we talking the 10 best All Time Halos starters (as in Halos career) or is it the top 10 single season for Halos pitchers. Obviously, Nolan Ryan tops all lists, from there, if it's All Time, then Chuck Finley is right up at number and Frank Tanana is up there as well (can we have a pre-arm troubles Tanana and post-arm troubles Tanana, the way he resurrected his career after arm troubles is really an amazing story -- before he hurt his arm, Tanana was a fireballer). If it's more BEST season, then others certainly get in the mix -- Ryan still tops the list IMO, but other folks like Dean Chance (for all his status as a Halos icon, Chance's career with the Angels was relatively sort but he did have the Cy Young Award season and was the Halos only Cy Young Award winner for a long time before Bartolo Colon got his in a year of comparatively weak starting pitching and a weak Cy Young field. IMO).....others in that mix are Andy Messersmith (his Halos career was short but brilliant, he got traded to the Dodgers in a multi-player deal that I think included Frank Robinson).....Messersmith was arguably the top MLB pitcher during his years with the Angels and then over to the Dodgers......then he sorted of faded away quickly.........he was really best in the league for a very short window of time. Also John Lackey would have to be on the list of ten best Halos pitching seasons.....

well the example of how difficult it is to do anything re a new ballpark may be Oakland's plight. they should have been in a new ballpark years ago and they're stuck. the situation there re the ballpark has been weighing down that franchise for years --- all their efforts to re-locate (complicated by SF Giants opposition just as a move to downtown LA would be opposed by the LA Dodgers who would oppose it within MLB ranks as well as using its political clout to set up roadblocks to any Angels/ downtown LA deal)......so this whole situation is going nowhere soon.

I guess Carew played a lot of 1B for us -- but to me he was/ is always will be a 2B -- that's where he played during his prime in Minnesota. It's kinda like some folks forgetting that Ernie Banks was once a very good SS for the Cubs -- he spent the last half of his career at 1B.

Fletcher -- you may be right -- and if Green sits the pine here the best thing may be a taste of the bigs and then back to regular playing time at SLC. But doesn't Green play some SS? -- they seemed to put him there during ST -- I thought he was going to make the team as a MIF bench depth guy, I like McDonald. Didn't see him as the roster spot winner coming out of ST but IMO he's proven his worth to the club in the role he's been given. Unfortunately my liking of some of these guys (McDonald, Stewart, Green) is the realization that Freese's best defensive position may be DH and he's not hitting well enough to be an every day DH. I'd have Green in at third base for Freese in about the 6th inning of almost every game for the three weeks Green is up with the club.

Eric -- I am sure you are correct.........it's a bargaining ploy. besides, it's part of the El Toro Marine Base property and, as you obviously know, there's a long history of development battles over that property. some folks would consider an MLB ballpark worse than an airport. Nuff said.

Fangraphs seems to be an overall ranking of offense and defense........with the offense (as usual) taking precedence. Nothing wrong with that. But I assume this thread is asking BEST DEFENSIVE 1B. I'd say 1.) Erstad 2.) JT Snow 3) Spencer and 4) Wally Joyner couldn't go wrong with any of them. of those listed, Spencer was really considered a defensive specialist and long before (the knock on) JT Snow, was criticized for not having corner power numbers at the plate. I always like the way JT Snow played 1B and am sure he was responsible for some of the good stats the SF Giants pitchers had during his years there at 1B.

this is obviously all designed to put pressure on the City of Anaheim........so good for Arte !! There's a deal with the Angels and Anaheim that can get done -- the COA needs to stop the games.......the full council approved the framework of an offer and the Mayor (the dissenting one vote in a 4 to 1 approval vote for the offer) yanked it back.......there are some legitimate concerns that the COA has -- for example, Arte and the Angels need to commit to any related development deal with the surrounding land and if he tries to flip the development rights (I don't think the COA can outright forbid Arte from doing so) instead of having developing the property himself with one of his development entities -- then the lease rate and any negotiated cash pay out by the Halos should increase significantly.......at this point, the best thing may be to un-couple the whole development concept and just negotiate a straight lease for another 10 to 20 years and, if Arte really wants to construct a new baseball only type ballpark (something that would be a very reasonable thing for Arte and the Angels to want), the time-table for that and specific terms regarding certain lease issues during the 'departure years' (the two year period at the end of the lease when the new ball park is being built) should be part of the extension terms...... Having said this. the best place for the Angels is the location where they are now........a new ballpark on that site could be a possibility in the future.........there's a lot of mistrust between the Angels and COA -- it's getting in the way of deal being done and things are likely to heat up with the release of the city financed 'appraisal' which is likely to be highly tilted to the COA position on all issues.

yes. ESPN was hockey central back in the day -- I used to like it when Gary Thorne did the ESPN games -- one of the better hockey PBP guys around -- of course I'm partial to Bob Miller. Gary Thorne is now doing PBP for the Baltimore Orioles -- didn't realize that. Thorne not doing a regular hockey gig is a sin.

no mention of Jim Spencer?? I know that's going back a bit.

If Grant Green does well, then Freese, Stewart and McDonald sort of become 'on the bubble' Of those three, Stewart seems to have played well, earning more playing time at Freese's expense and McDonald seems to have fulfilled his back up/ defensive replacement role quite well. Would seem that McDonald would be the one to go if that decision had to be made -- which is unfortunate because McDonald, IMO, has done pretty much everything the Halos have asked of him and more.......provides some great MIF and corner bench depth, especially in the late innings........ even more valuable because 1. Freese is so slow on the base paths and 2. Freese's defensive skills are about as advertised -- not that good.

Good for the Halos -- hope they can keep it near a train station and close enough to walk to from hotels and restaurants/ bars.

Going to be interesting if the Kings can keep the intensity of the past five games going -- I say FIVE -- because I thought the Kings played very well in Game Three vs. the Sharks and a bad bounce had the game going the other way in OT........that's what made Game Three such a tough loss -- the Kings played well and still wound up 0-3 in the series in a MUST WIN game. The Ducks/ Kings that I watched this year pretty much were dominated by the Ducks who at certain times during the series seemed to have such speed on the ice, they looked like some of the better Detroit Red Wing teams of recent years -- seems to me that the top Detroit teams of recent years have speed on the ice not easily matched by others -- that's how the Ducks looked to me in several of the Kings-Ducks games this year.......Ducks just seemed to dominate and have the Kings' number all season long. Hopefully the Kings have made a Stanley Cup resurgence and will be a different team in this series. As for ESPN pundits -- doubt that any of them stayed up late enough to watch any of the Kings-Ducks games and if they only watched the Outdoor Series Kings-Ducks game at Dodger Stadium, you'd think they'd be projecting a Ducks sweep.

interesting. I thought Grant Green had a decent chance of making the 25 man roster out of ST.......but the thinking must have been -- better for him to play every day at SLC than as a bench depth guy in Anaheim. Wonder what this means for certain players on the roster (McDonald) OR is it just a case of the Halos restructuring their roster and carrying one less pitcher now that the first month of the season is in the books and adding the MIF bench depth spot they intended to carry from this point forward. Green can help the club, just hope he gets enough playing time -- sounds as if Freese may headed for more platooning or at a minimum, being replaced for a pinch runner and then defensive replacement as early as the 6th inning......works for me.

I have tickets to the Rangers/ Angels game Saturday night as part of my premium seating mini-season ticket package and I plan to attend. What are the chances (zero to none?) that the Angels will flash some updates (like video highlight stuff) on the big screen of that HUGE GAME ONE being played right across the street. It would be great if the Angels did that..........Memo to Tim Mead -- Halos could score some real points here!!! If the Kings go up 1-0 in the game and they flash a video highlight at the Big A -- whaddya think -- all groans or about mixed response? I think there are more Kings fans there than folks realize.........probably 3 to 1 Ducks fans.....

I don' dislike the Ducks - I root for them when they aren't playing the Kings (and when their win doesn't affect the Kings seeding).... But I've a long time Kings fan -- this Kings-Ducks series is hockey heaven for S. Cal hockey fans and a long time in coming. Ducks have, quite honestly, owned the Kings in the head to head games this year and pretty much out-played them, Kings can't just not show up for two games like they did in Round One vs. San Jose and expect to pull out a series win. Kings pretty much need to win Game One to win this series........Ducks am sure are favored but have heard pundits on the NHL channel saying otherwise -- not sure why -- East Coast folks (like ESPN and everything else) probably didn't see even one Kings-Ducks game this year -- the big show case game -- the Dodger Stadium game -- was pretty much all Ducks......they just dominated the game. GO KINGS GO!!

GAME ONE -- 5 PM at the Honda Center. Texas Rangers/ Angels at 6:05 across the street. Gonna be buzzing down on Katella..........

Ducks have pretty much out played the Kings in the regular season series games this year......... I think this series goes SEVEN.

Both the Kings and Ducks are playing stellar hockey right now......... Kings fans, let's just hope tonight's team shows up for the Ducks series and not whatever team that was on the ice for Games One and Two. This is just great for S. Cal hockey..........

YES SIR!!! THIS IS SO. CAL HOCKEY!! GO KINGS GO!!! BRING ON THE DUCKS!! GONNA BE A GOOD ONE.

I have tickets to the Rangers- Angels game on Saturday--- will there be game one that night as well !! What a night in ANAHEIM.........

KINGS DO IT !!! FIVE to ONE KINGS!!!!

been on the penalty kill all night and still have a two goal lead............wow.

GOOD NEWS!! -- GAME SEVEN !!! Bad news.......either way it goes tonight -- last telecast of the year for Bo Miller and Jim Fox...... well, I guess they'll do those Playoff game post game shows like that did last year and in years' past...

Niemi in goal as expected.........GO KINGS GO !!